The Zombie's Son
by Gamer95
Summary: Rottytops would never have seen herself as the 'motherly' type. At least, not until an incident involving an abused little boy and some wolves...
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter looked around fearfully at his surroundings. It was dark...Barely lighter than his cupboard. It was cold and wet and scary... He had no idea where he was and he kept hearing scary noises.

He stood with caution, keep his eyes and ears open for anything that might attack him. His already timid and heavily traumatised mind was barely able to work without going haywire the longer he went on.

This was not how he expected things to go.

Having gone through another of his Uncle's lectures on doing things right, accompanied by the criket bat this time, Harry had been thrown into his cupboard with a warning that the fire place iron was next if he didn't straighten up tomorrow. It hurt, every second of it. He just wanted it to end. He just wanted to be loved. Why was life always so cruel to him.

As far as Uncle Vernon was concerned, he was a freak.

His thoughts were cut off by a snapping sound, and dread soon followed at the noise that followed. Turning to his right slowly, he saw what was possibly the scariest thing he saw yet.

A pair of yellow glowing eyes in the dark forest night.

He tried to convince himself that it was all in his imagination. But that became impossible when the low, guttural growling began. He whimpered and stumbled back. He had to run...And so he did just that, disregarding the pain entirely as he sprinted. Despite his toddler-like appearance and tiny legs, he was actually a fast runner, having had practice from running from Dudley. However, he was not fast enough. The wolf was catching up fast...

Meanwhile...

While the dark forest would be an intimidating, and even creepy place for most, there were some that called such a place home. In fact, one such resident was currently enjoying the sights.

It was rare for her to take time to herself, sometimes she couldn't even say hi to her favorite genie girl all the way in Scuttle Town, but she couldn't complain. Rottytops was usually care-free anyway.

As such, when the opportunity arose, the zombie girl would take as much time as she could to enjoy the dark, danky forest that undead like herself could find peace in. She just hoped that something didn't occur as she relaxed on her walk.

But little did she know, fate didn't like to be tested.

Her ears happen to catch a distant sound in the almost black forest depths.

It sounded like a wolf. Huh. No biggie. Wolves weren't so tough, she could take one with just one swing of her arm. She was a lot stronger than she looked. She wasn't gonna track it down, not worth it.

However, another sound changed her mind. A scream of terror and despair...

She wasn't normally one to jump into things; to save people that probably wouldn't even thank her in the end. But if hanging out with Shantae has taught her anything, it's that you can't ignore someone that needed help.

The fact that scream earlier came from a child only fanned the fire.

With her decision made, Rottytops made a break for the sound. She didn't have to travel far to see about five wolves clawing and biting at a small hollow in a tree.

Within the hollow was a terrified Harry. One of the scary doggies had been enough, but as soon as he took shelter several more had taken an intrest in what was happening that they joined their friend. The snarling had been scary enough, but seeing the dogs bear their teeth had made him snap. All he could think about was hiding. All he could DO was hope it would all end soon. He couldn't even stop his cries, and that only seemed to make the angry dogs angrier.

He was crying so hard he couldn't hear the yelps of one of the dogs being hit. He didn't even see who came to his rescue.

"Hey, ya stupid, mangy, smelly mongrels!" A voice sounded out, getting the wolves' attention. "Why don't ya pick on someone your own size, huh?" Rottytops stormed out of the bushes, ready to use her disembodied arm as a bludgeoning weapon. The wolves snarled as they approached her. "Oh, you wanna fight me, huh? Okay, flea bag! BRING IT ON!" Rottytops let out a battle cry and charged at the wolves. One tried to pounce, but she managed to knock it aside with a swing of her arm. "Chew on that, Fido!" She said cockily.

The fight between zombie and beast lasted for a good few minutes. Rottytops managed to knock a few of them out, but some of them were too stubborn to quit. One even managed to bite her leg, but it felt sick as soon as the undead girl's blood touched it's tounge.

Eventually she came out on top, with all the wolves unconcious at her feet. After catching her breath and reattaching her arm, looked down to the leg that was bitten and let out a low groan.

"Not again. The thing that makes it worse is the fact I can't hide it."

Just as she finished her complaint, her ears registered the crying in the tree. Deciding to do what she can, she went to the hollow trunk, only to feel as if her heart was ripped out..again.

"Aw geez..." She moaned at the sight. The child was in the tree. He was bleeding, his bare feet were cut up and scraped, he was cold, he was stick thin, he was crying his little heart out... The sight would have brought a tear to the eye of even Risky Boots

"Hey, are you okay little guy?" The girl asked as she reached out to the child. As soon as her hand touched the boy, saying he flinched would be an understatemen. He yelped and went as far back as he could in the tree to get away from the one who touched him.

He wasn't ready to die. He didn't want the monsters to get him! He needed help!

He was unaware that his savior had just tried to help him. Said zombie was left stunned at what happened, but soon regained her senses as she tried to defuse the situation.

"Heeey, c'mere, squirt. I'm not gonna hurt ya." She assured him gently. "Heh...I haven't eaten anyone's brain in well over a month now!" She joked, trying to lighten the mood. The boy responded by squeaking in terror and curling into a tight ball. '...STUPID!' Rottytops scolded herself, smacking her forehead.

"H-hey, forget that last part, I was just kidding." 'I hope..' She could never really keep track of when some unfortunate soul lost their life in this part of the wood. Hey, zombies gotta eat too, and she wasn't gonna let a fresh set of brains to go to waste.

Now that she thought about it that probably would explain the rise in brainless undead around here.

Unfortunately, her words weren't heeded. Not even heard. The boy was still crying, and by this point he started hiccuping. Now Rottytops was at a loss on what to do. She needed a way to assure the child that he wasn't in any danger. Going out on a limb, she reached out to him and began to gently rub his messy black locks.

Harry flinched at the contact. This was it. This was his punishment for crying! Freaks weren't even supposed to make noise!

...He was confused when the pain never came.

Rottytops sighed with relief when he didn't flinch away. "There ya go, kiddo. That's better. See? I'm not so bad, right? I'm just your average, run of the mill zombie out on a stroll. I don't hurt kids, so no worries." She hesitated before continuing. "Okay...I'm gonna pick you up now, okay? I just wanna get a better look at you."

Harry was hesitant when she told him she was going to pick him up. What if she didn't like what she saw? What if she decided to hurt him like his family did?

Then again... she sounded nice. And she was kinda pretty, too.

He gave a short, shy nod, and that was all the answer Rottytops need.

Gently, so as not to hurt him more, she removed the child from the tree. Once she had done so, she realised just how tiny he really was. He was also really light. That raised several flags in her head. She may not remember much from when she was alive, but she could tell a child was malnourished with a good look at them.

She grimaced when she looked at him, and he flinched. She didn't look happy to see him. However, he was pleasantly surprised. She didn't hit him. She held him against her chest instead. He blinked and looked up at her in confusion. She was...holding him nice? It was...very, VERY comfy... Sure, she was a little bit stinky, but she was also warm and gentle...

Giving the boy a small smile when looked to her, she couldn't help but notice his wide green eyes. She giggled quietly at how adorable he looked.

"There ya go. I'm a nice zombie, aren't I?" She asked playfully.

While Harry was confused as to what a zombie was, it was the last thing on his list of things to ask. What was on the forefront of his mind was why she was being so nice to him.

"Wh-Why-" She interrupted him by putting a finger to his mouth. "Less talky, more resty." She said calmly. "You're pretty badly hurt there. You need to relax, kay?" She pressed his head to her bosom gently. "There ya go..."

If Harry wasn't confused before, he was now. But he didn't have time to think about it as earlier events caught up to him. Finally feeling tired from everything that happened that day, he let ou a sof yawn and nestled into Rottytops' chest. Despite the smell, it was soft.

Rottytops let out another giggle when the child fell asleep. She then saw how peaceful he looked, deciding he was absolutely adorable the he clutched to her clothes as he slept. Shaking her head slightly, she set off back to her carrige so she could set the boy down on a soft bed.

"Alright kiddo." She began as she walked on. "Time to find out where your home is."

She just hoped her spider web picked up gossip of a missing child.


	2. Chapter 2

Rottytops rested on her couch, periodically looking back at her web. She was still waiting for information regarding the kid an hour after she had brought him back, and nothing was coming up. The zombie sighed and looked over at the boy. He was still asleep, curled up in a tiny ball as his little body rose and fell with snores. She chuckled. "Cute little guy..." She said to herself.

She didn't think it was possible for a child to be as cute as he is. If she were anyone else she would have tried to eat him then and there. Good thing she had plenty of coffee this morning. Plus, attacking kids just wasn't in her nature.

Not to mention she'd never hear the end of it from Shantae. She just hoped her brothers didn't get any ideas.

Looking back to her web, she saw her spider arriving through the door and back on its perch. She made her way to the small arachnid and gave it a short tap, and thus started reading the messages it picked up.

'Hm... The guy up North hasn't heard anything... My gal over by the lake hasn't either... Bessy heard of a child disappearing, but it's a girl there... The ladies over at-'

"Agh, damn bug..." She muttered as her spider closed in on it's accidental prey.

Rolling her eyes, Rottytops stood and made her way back over to the sleeping child. She took a seat next to him, resting her head in her hands. Reclining, she looked over at him before deciding to ruffle his messy dark hair. She pulled away after a moment, then grimaced when she saw lice covering her hand. She shook them off, and her spider immediately came to eat.

Letting the spider go about its business, she turned her attention back to the child. He was so cute as he slept, but he was also... so small. Not to mention he looked like he hadn't had a decent meal in weeks. There was also the light bruising on his arms. She hoped it was from escaping the wolves. His oversized shirt wasn't doing her worries any favors either. Where was this kid from? More importantly, why was he in the forest in the first place?

She fidgeted in her seat as she stared at the oversized shirt. It appeared to be stained with some kind of red substance...She shook her head and looked away. It was probably just spaghetti sauce or something. Still...She looked back at him with a raised brow. She found herself growing curious...And so, carefully, so as not to wake him, she snuck a quick peek beneath the boy's shirt.

She tenderly pulled the adittedly large collar of the shirt downward, and immediately wished she hadn't. She didn't care what the reason was, no child should be THAT thin. Scars could also be seen on his fragile looking chest, almost see-through even. Just what the hell happened to this child?

She shook her head and pulled the shirt back down. She crossed her arms and stared at him sympathetically. 'This kid needs some food...' She thought. 'Man...If only I was stocked up...' She sighed before gently picking him up. 'Well, I was thinking of visiting Shantae in Scuttle Town anyway...'

Writing a quick note to her brothers and leaving it on the table for them to see, Rottytops hoisted the boy up so his head rested on her shoulder. She needed to not only get this kid fed but she also needed to get him to a doctor. She needed to know just how bad this kid might have had it.

She looked to the boy just in time to see him strirring, his eyes fluttering open.

She smirked as he looked up at her groggily. "Hey squirt." She greeted calmly. "Have a good little nap there?" She gave him a toothy grin and ruffled his messy hair.

Harry blinked tiredly as he stared at the green haired woman, before it all came back at once. All traces of tirednes vanished as his eyes widened, memories of the wolves and being saved from them coming back.

"It's you..." Rottytops couldn't help but smile at the cute look of awe he had.

"That's right." She giggled her reply. "Who else would I be?" Her eyes widened a bit as she remembered something important. "Speaking of, my name's Rottytops. What about you little guy? What's your name?"

The boy looked down. "You don't wanna know my name..." He said gloomily. Rottytops raised her brow.

"I absolutely DO wanna know your name!" She said with a grin. "C'moooon, don't hold out on me. Tell me. Come on, kiddo." She prodded gently.

"H-Harry..." The little boy squeaked.

Rottytops let out another giggle and voiced her thoughts. "Aw, that's cute. It fits 'cause of your messy hair." She ruffled his hair with a thankfully lice-free hand, also to try and get rid of any that might have gotten in last time.

Harry blushed and looked away, not knowing what to do about the compliment. "It's not cute..." he mumbled. Rottytops was able to hear and frowned.

"Hey," she spoke up. "Why would ya go saying something like that?"

"They keep saying it's filthy and co- co-comon..." He said, unsure how to pronounce the word 'common'. Rottytops frowned, not liking where this was going.

"...Is there...something you wanna talk about, kiddo?" She asked, concern evident in her tone. Harry looked confused. "Like, maybe there's...some people who aren't treating you too good...?"

If Harry was confused before, he was now. "What do you mean?" He asked meekly. Because of how he was raised, he didn't believe he was being treated wrongly. His guardians made him believe that he deserved what was coming to him.

"I mean..." Rottytops swallowed, having a bad feeling where this was going. "I mean did people ever... hit you, or something like that?"

Harry nodded. "Uh-huh...They had to...I was too freaky...I wasn't supposed to be a freak, but I was...So they beat me up to teach me how freaky I am..."

Rottytops had stopped cold midway through Harry's explanation. What would make him think something like that? Why was he thinking that in the first place? How could anyone-

She cut off her train of thought. Whoever this kid had stayed with was asking to be torn to pieces just by what she had heard. There was no way in Hell the damage she saw and heard was going unjustified.

She made a mental note to take to Shantae the next time Harry was asleep.

Putting a lid on her anger, she continued walking to her destination, trying to console Harry as she went on her way.

In the seaside port of Scuttle Town, the town's half-genie hero, Shantae, was sitting on the rooftop of her Uncle Mimic's house, watching over the sea. A part of it was because she wanted to relax. Another part was because she was watching out for any activity from her nemesis Risky Boots.

"Hey there!" A familiar voice sounded from down below. Blinking, she looked down and smiled when she saw her friend...But her smile became a surprised frown when she saw what Rottytops was carrying. "...So I uh...need your help..."

Shantae stood up and made her way to the edge of the roof closer to Rottytops. Jumping down, she gracefully landed next to her zombified friend, her long purple hair flowing with her movements. She smiled again at her friend. "It's been a while, Rottytops." She greeted before turning a blank gaze to the child in the zombie's arms. "Who's this?"

Now it was Rottytops' turn to smile as she gestured to the boy she was holding. "This Harry." She said candily. "I found this little guy lost in the woods and, well..." Her expression fell as she trailed off, and the half-genie seemed to get the message.

"We'll talk more inside." She said, before turning to Harry with a smile. "It's nice to meet you Harry." She spoke softly. "My name is Shantae."

The boy just hid his face in Rottytops' chest and whimpered. Shantae giggled. "Aww, he's so cute." She cooed with a closed-eyed smile.

"Yeah, he's a sweet little pipsqueak." Rottytops agreed.

"And he can actually stand how smelly you are." Shantae teased. Rottytops pouted and stuck out her tongue.

Zombie and genie later ajourned to inside the house to continue there conversation. After a brief introduction between Harry and Shantae's adoptive uncle, who later moved to the kitchen to make some snacks, Shantae and her undead friend themselves in the living room.

"Alright." Shantae began, "you said that there was something you needed help with?"

Rottytops nodded. "Yeah, uh...I need..." She grumbled something under her breath.

"Sorry, repeat that?" Rottytops grumbled again. "Didn't catch that..."

"Parenting advice..."

Shantae blinked. And blinked again. She even tried to clean out her ear with her pinky for good measure before looking to her zombie friend again, who was just staring at her expectantly.

"Um." Shantae finally managed before pausing. "What brought this on?" She was genuinely curious as to why the green girl in front of her suddenly decided she wanted to be a mom. At least, that was the impression she was getting.

Rottytops suddenly began to grow upset as she tightened her hold on the boy. "Cause...Welll" She looked down. "I can't leave the little guy." She admitted. "I...I kinda got attached...And...I think he did too..."

Raising an inquisitive brow, Shantae got the feeling that she wasn't getting the full story. After a short, mental debate, she decided not to pry. She could always get her answers later.

She let out a sigh before adressing the, apparently, undead mother to be. "Well, if that's what you want. But I highly doubt that I'm someone you should come to for parenting advise." She stated.

Through all of this, Harry was looking back and forth between the two women, having no idea what was going on.

Rottytops looked down at him and patted his head. "So you have no idea how I'd go about looking after the little guy?" She asked, running her fingers through his hair. Shantae shrugged.

"I...guess the best thing to do is just...be there for him." She replied. "I know you can do it, though, Rotty."

"Heh...Thanks, Shantae...Oh yeah, there was another reason I came...I uh...don't really have anything for the little guy to eat..."

The half-genie simply smiled in exasperation and shook her head. "Good thing Uncle Mimic's in the kitchen then."

As if on cue, a white bearded man in a green coat came out with snacks as more talk about how Rottytops can take care of Harry. As Mimic joined in on the conversation, none of them noticed a black figure at the window spying on them.

Its captain had assigned it with a mission to spy on the genie girl and report back when it discovered any new developements. When it saw the zombie talk to the genie girl about a young boy she found and her wanting to take care of him, it pondered whether or not it would be news worthy. Making its decision, it quicky jot down a note and attatched it to the leg of a pigeon it had with it.

As the bird flew off, the figure went back to spy duty as it saw the big man move into the kitchen again, possibly to make dinner.

It didn't know it, but things were about to get interesting.


End file.
